A ruthless vampire warrior, Grave Van der Garde rules the mercenary Preux Chevaliers with an iron fist, determined to retain his hard-won position as one of the most powerful men in Hell and his reputation as the heartless King of Death. But beneath the cold façade beats the heart of a vampire torn between love and hate, ripped in two directions by a single ethereally beautiful female—his fated phantom mate.

Driven by her phantom instincts, Isla used a spell to make her solid in order to deceive the vampire who killed her sister’s demon mate and have revenge on him, condemning him with a single kiss to become a phantom too. But her plan took an unexpected turn when she fell in love with him, and with her new life, and the night she betrayed him shattered both of their hearts. Now, he lives to make her suffer through their connection, one that is fading with them as they begin to slip into the phantom world, and she must face the monster she created if she is to save herself and the vampire she still loves.

With a demon from Grave’s past determined to destroy him and everything he holds dear, and the clock ticking down to their inevitable doom, can he and Isla overcome their past and their pride to work together to secure the future they both desire deep in their hearts? Or will death finally catch up with the vampire king and his phantom mate?

﻿Book eleven in the Eternal Mates series and I'm still absolutely amazed at Ms Heaton's imaginative and indeed original ideas. Yes, I've always been a fan of her world building but with Haunted by the King of Death, quite frankly she has outdone herself. Not only do we get a rough, tough hero who is matched by a heroine who is so in control of her formidable powers it's almost unreal but old favourites appear. If you have read the Vampire Erotic Theatre series, then you are in for a treat, but to say exactly why might spoil the fun; although I just will add these vampires truly have a savage nature that works out so well here.

So Grave, yes, he is one very angry vampire but with good reason and from the start as a reader it's kind of hard not to empathise with him but you know there's always two sides to every story. The fact that Isla followed her phantom instincts in seeking revenge has left the couple facing huge repercussions and it's time for Isla to come clean if there's ever going to be a chance at saving either of them. Unfortunately, in the realms revenge and violence seem to be inevitable and it turns out Grave has an enemy who is powerful, cunning, and not above hurting innocents. As the couple face their nemesis, there's still the tricky problem of actually surviving and truth be told things are looking well, very grave indeed!

I liked seeing the dynamics of this unusual pairing. As previously mentioned from the first page Grave had my sympathy but I wasn't sure just how Ms Heaton could make him likable as he is after all a pretty bad ass mercenary. Isla was much easier to like because we instantly saw her softer more loyal side but boy is their relationship all kinds of screwed up! Mated for one hundred years yet separate, in love and did I mention Grave hates Isla? Yes, the author really had her work cut out giving this couple a happy ending. Add in the trauma that occurs, not to mention fight scenes that are vividly described and this was another jaw dropping story.

I loved the cameos that became integral to the story and of course the romance has enough steam to start an engine! Another entertaining book and I look forward to the next Eternal Mates story. Please can we have Frey soon as he's so sad and I'm sure readers would love to give him some good loving!